Category Archives: Media Statements

DEATH OF SEVEN PEOPLE IN THE RECRUITMENT PROCESS FOR KZN TRAFFIC POLICE

KwaZulu-Natal Christian Council (KZNCC) is disturbed by the deaths of seven people on Thursday and Friday 27 and 28 December 2012 in Pietermaritzburg. We extend our heartfelt condolences and prayers to the families of those who have lost love ones. We affirm the swift action taken by the MEC for Transport, Community Safety Willis Mchunu to suspend all recruitment,

KZNCC calls upon the Premier of KwaZulu-Natal, Dr Zweli Mkhize and MEC for Transport, Community Safety Willis Mchunu in addition to a Police investigation, to set up an Independent Commission of Enquiry to:

Establish the cause of the deaths

Review the recruitment process (How can 34000 people be short listed for 90 trainee

posts?)

Establish how well trained the recruitment officers and fitness instructors are for this

task?

Lack of basic first aid and water facilities.

Find appropriated ways to support the affected families while the investigations are

going on.

We request that this proposed Independent Commission of Enquiry include members of the Religious community.

The summit convened under the theme: “Land Policies, Human Rights, Development and Civil Society Action”.

The KwaZulu-Natal Christian Council (KZNCC) and the Southern African Catholic Bishops Conference (SACBC) in conjunction with the Thukela-Amajuba-Mzinyathi Christian Council (TAMCC), KwaZulu Regional Christian Council (KRCC) Southern KwaZulu- Natal Christian Council (SKZNCC) and Midlands Christian Council (MCC), hosted its 4th annual summit on Land Issues in Southern Africa (SADC).

Among the key partners and stakeholders of the hosting organization present at the summit, was the Rural Women’s Movement (RWM), Association for Rural Advancement (AFRA), The Landless People’s Movement (LPM), farmers and the University of KwaZulu- Natal (UKZN).

The summit was held in Durban and was officially opened by hosting organization CEO Dr Douglas Dziva on Thursday, 18 October 2012 and ended on a very high note on Friday, 19 October 2012, with key resolutions that are aimed at crafting an impactful and effective way forward for these organizations.

This 4th annual South African-led land summit had attracted close to a 100 delegates representing NGOs, social movements and faith based organizations in other Southern African countries such as Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Botswana.

Among the major concerns raised by the group and intensively deliberated upon during heated discussions was land dispossession, skewed land ownership, environmental degradation, the slow pace of land reform, inadequate political will, slow change of the status quo relating to women and land ownership, evection of people from their land and invasion of farms; as well as the abuse of farm workers and killing of farmers.

The delegates called for intensified efforts and interventions from government, business and religious leaders on land issues.

Among the key resolutions adopted by the summit was the intensified effort towards regional mobilization of grass roots people-raising awareness and supporting them in lobbying and advocacy for social justice relating to land in Southern African countries and the immediate creation of strategic networks and partnerships in specific countries within the region focusing on social justice, environmental justice and economic transformation which will be geared to assist the efforts of the group towards social transformation.

Strategic and effective structures and communication systems will be put in place in order to accelerate and advance the pace with which the identified concerns are addressed.

African governments colluding with land-grabbers at the expense of the poor

Scores of Church related Organisations operating in SADC region have criticised the African governments for betraying people by allowing massive land grabbing by foreign multi-national companies. Church leaders and activists from six SADC countries (Zimbabwe, Zambia, Botswana, DRC, South Africa and Angola) who met in Durban from 16 to 18 October singled out national elites and African governments as the major actors in land- grabbing. They felt that lax laws were allowing the rich foreign corporates to displace the poor to pave way for mining, game reserves, golf estates and agricultural activities in pursuit of their own profits. The Durban based Catholic Cardinal Wilfred Napier, who was part of the workshop lamented that the poor people seem to have lost importance in eyes of their governments and the corporates. He said they only gain prominence during election times and are conveniently forgotten immediately thereafter.

One of the common issues which continued to emerge from presentations of participating countries is the governments’ slow pace or reluctance to protect people’s land rights. Most countries experience cases where ordinary people were given short to long term land leases that are subject to cancellations. While in other circles Zimbabwe has been commended for giving land to the poor through its fast track programme, the question of land tenure security is still contentious.

The 30 participants shared experiences showing that tenure systems in all Southern African countries are open to abuse and misuse by political elites, multi-corporates and traditional authorities. In Zambia local communities are being displaced to make way for mining activities, eg Solwezi district.

The participants strongly urged church leaders to redistribute church land and seek experts to offer advice on use of church land for food production and job creation. Bad governance and greed seem to have taken over in the distribution of God’s given natural resources. Speaking during the same land summit Methodist Bishop and Chairperson of the KwaZulu-Natal Christian Council Mike Vorster

called upon the South African government to abandon the willing buyer and willing seller land policy. Bishop Vorster said the policy was trying to balance two contrasting interests of the white landowners and the landless black majority, a situation he described as unworkable. The Church organisations resolved to lobby African governments to depoliticise and de-commodify land. As they plan massive mass mobilisation and campaigns in the entire SADC region, the group appeals to African parliaments to come up with laws that protect land owners, promote land rights and to criminalise massive land grabbing.

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